Full text of "Tools"
Workhorses
Make] Projects
Workhorses
Written By: Len Cullum
TOOLS:
PARTS:
Combination square (1)
Lumber (2)
Drill bit (1)
Lumber (1)
• Drill bit M)
it bit
Lumber (1)
Lumber (optional) (1)
clear cedar or pine
Drill bit (1)
Drill press (1)
(recc r drill
Hammer (1)
Double-sided taped)
Wood Finish d)
(optional)
Handsaw (1)
(recommended)
Knifed)
Sandpaper or Hand plane (1)
Table saw (1)
(recc )/- other saw
Wood chisel d)
mak harp
SUMMARY
Based on the trestles of a Japanese woodworking bench, these sawhorses are a good
beginning joinery project.
They're constructed using the mortise and tenon, the fundamental joint in woodworking. The
tenon (end projection) of one piece fits into the mortise (hole) in another piece.
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Workhorses
This project uses the drawbore style of mortise and tenon, which is secured by a wooden pin
that draws it tight and makes it look great.
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Workhorses
Step 1 — Mortise and Tenon Joint
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• What makes a drawbore different
from a regular pegged tenon is the
offset pin holes. Instead of the pin
passing straight through the joint to
hold it together, the hole in the
tenon is bored slightly closer to the
shoulder. This offset causes the
tenon to be drawn deeper into the
mortise when the wooden pin is
driven through.
• Watching a joint that you made pull
itself together like that is a very
cool thing. And when you feel how
strong it is with no glue or metal
fasteners, it opens doors in your
head. You realize that joinery isn't
just the realm of mountain-dwelling
woodworking mystics, but an
accessible approach to working
with wood.
• The joint may look intimidating, but
if you take your time and use sharp
tools, you'll be surprised at how
easy it is. And while the drawbore
style is a little more complicated,
when cut carefully it's fairly
forgiving of loose fits, a bonus for
the beginner.
• If you're comfortable around
woodworking tools, these horses
should present a light challenge,
then last a lifetime. Because of
their myriad uses in the workshop,
to call them sawhorses would sell
them short. I prefer workhorses.
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Workhorses
Step 2 — Lumber and Sizing
• Choosing the right lumber can
make the project much easier.
Look for pieces that are straight
and have the fewest knots. Sight
down the length of each one to
check for bending or twists
• I chose fir for a couple of reasons.
It's heavy, stiff, and fairly easy to
work, and since it's basic
construction lumber, it's available
most anywhere. You can also use
pine or cedar or pretty much any
wood you like, but do not use
treated lumber. The total cost for
the fir was $25.
• The proper sizing for horses is
largely about preference and use. I
use 2 sizes in my shop: higher
ones for standing work (sawing,
planing) and lower ones for sitting
work (heavy joinery).
• The finished height is determined
by measuring from the ground to
the bottom of your closed fist.
Subtracting 4" from that result will
give you the finished length for
your legs including the tenons.
We'll call that measurement H.
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Workhorses
Step 3 — Milling
• To start, lay out and cut all your
pieces to length. While there isn't a
lot of waste, there's enough to
allow you to move the parts around
to avoid larger knots and other
flaws. The cut list:
• From each 4x4 cut:
• 1 @ 36" beam, final
dimensions 3 1 /4"x3 1 /4"x36" 2
@ (H) legs, final dims
3"x3"xH
• From the 4x6 cut:
• 4 @ 21" feet, final dims
3 1 /4"x5"x21"
• From the 2x4 cut:
• 2 @ 28 1 /2" stretchers, final
dims 1-3/8"x3"x28 1 / 2 "
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Workhorses
Step 4
• There are several ways to dimension the parts, from handsaws to band saws. My tool of
choice is the table saw. Since most table saws don't have the capacity to make these cuts
in a single pass, I'll do it in two.
• Starting with the legs, set the saw fence to 3" and raise the blade to just past half of the
4x4 wood's thickness, in this case about 1 3 /4 M high. Putting the best face against the fence,
push the piece through. Once you've made that cut, flip the piece end to end, and with the
same face against the fence, make the second pass. You should be left with 3/8"-thick
scrap.
• Next, rotate the piece 90° and repeat the process, removing the second face. Repeat this
process with all of the parts, finishing all like parts at once.
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Workhorses
Step 5 — Layout
• The accuracy of the layout is important, so take your time. Mark all like parts at the same
time and check that they all match before making any cuts.
• I generally measure joints from the center out. After measuring in from both sides to find
center, I strike a line and work outward from it. You don't have to follow this method, but it
works well for me.
• I also use the blade of my square to transfer lines. Once I have one measurement marked,
I then transfer that same line to the matching or corresponding pieces. It speeds things
along and helps keep everything consistent.
• NOTE: If you're using a handsaw, the easiest way to get a good straight cut is as
follows. Using a square, mark cut lines around all 4 sides. Make a diagonal cut
about a quarter of the way through, roll the piece 90°, and cut again. Continue rolling and
cutting until you've cut through.
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Workhorses
Step 6 — Tenons
• To lay out the leg tenons, start by marking the shoulders. Measure in 2W in from each
end and strike a line around all 4 sides. For the cheek line, measure W to either side of
center and strike a line all the way around the end. Transfer these lines to the ends of all 4
legs (remember to orient each leg's 2 tenons 90° to each other).
• The layout for the stretchers is the same, only you should be 3 1 /4" in from the ends, and
these tenons are aligned with each other.
• To cut the tenons, I like to use a saw called a ryoba nokogiri ("double-edged saw"). The
ryoba is a Japanese generaluse carpentry saw with two sets of teeth: big teeth for ripping
(cutting with the grain), and small teeth for crosscutting (across the grain). Unlike most
western saws, which cut on the push stroke, Japanese saws cut on the pull stroke.
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Workhorses
Step 7
• Using the crosscut side of the saw, cut along the shoulder line, being sure to stop when
you reach the cheek line. To help, keep the cut straight, you can hold another piece of
wood along the line as a guide
• Flip the saw to its rip side, and cut along the cheek line. When you have a diagonal cut
from the shoulder to the center of the thickness, roll the piece over and finish the cut from
the other side.
Step 8
i Once all the cheeks are cut, lay out and cut the edge cheeks. Measuring out VA" from
center, strike your lines and cut.
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Workhorses
Step 9
• Clean up any high spots with a sharp chisel.
• The last step is to put a small chamfer or bevel on the end of the tenon. This can be done
with a knife, chisel, or sandpaper, and it will help ease assembly.
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Workhorses
Step 10 — Mortises
• Again, working out from center, mark all your lines. When laying out the mortises in the
legs, be sure to mark them on both sides of the legs because the tenon passes all the way
through.
• The first step in the mortising is to remove the waste using a drill. While a hand drill will
work, a drill press is recommended. A drill press will give you reliably straight holes with
sides that can be used for reference as you chisel out the waste.
• Feet and beam mortises: Using a 1" Forstner bit, drill out the mortises to a depth of 2 5/8";
these are blind mortises (or stop mortises), which don't go all the way through. To keep
the sides straight, first drill holes at either end, and then connect them by drilling a hole in
the center. Use a sharp, 1" chisel to clean up the sides and square the corners
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Workhorses
Step 11
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• Use a sharp, 1" chisel to clean up the sides and square the corners
• Stretcher mortises: Because the stretcher is a through mortise, you'll want to work from
both sides. Only drill halfway through from one side before rolling the piece over and
drilling the rest of the way from the other. This will keep the drill bit from blowing out the
exit side, making a splintery mess of things. After drilling, use the same procedure for
chiseling, working from both sides to keep both faces intact.
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Workhorses
Step 12 — Pin Holes (Drawbores)
• Lay out the holes for the pins
through the mortises (but not the
tenons yet). For the feet and
beams these should be centered
1 V2" from the mortised edge. For
the stretchers they should be on
center.
• Use a V2" bit to drill all the mortise
pin holes. Again, using a drill press
is highly recommended. Drill slowly
to minimize splintering on the exit.
• NOTE: I'm using dowels for
this project, but if you want
to take it further, you can square
the holes with a chisel and make
square pins instead.
• It's time to fit the joints. Since each
will have a slightly different fit, be
sure to mark each one for its
corresponding part. I usually mark
letters on the tenons and on the
edge of the mortise in places that
will be covered once they're
assembled.
I
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Workhorses
Step 13
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• The pieces should slip together with no more than a few raps of a hammer. If it's a lot
tighter than that, carefully pull it apart and inspect the tenon. You should be able to see
compressions or shiny spots that will tell you where it's too tight. Use a chisel to make
adjustments. And remember, a slightly loose joint will be better than an overly tight one on
this project.
• Once you've fit all the joints, assemble the horses.
• Using a sharp pencil, trace the edges of the pin holes onto the tenons. It's important that
you get the edges of the hole, so mark them carefully. Disassemble the horses. Next,
measuring from the edge of the circle you've drawn on the tenon, mark a line 1/16" closer
to the shoulder. This line is the edge of the tenon's pin hole; because it's offset from the
mortise's pin hole, it will draw the joint tight. You can now drill through the tenon
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Workhorses
Step 14 — Shaping
• First, relieve the bottoms of the feet (make them concave). This will make them more
stable on uneven surfaces. Clamp a pair of feet together with bottoms facing each other,
and mark a line 4" in from each end. Using a drill press and 1" Forstner bit, drill a line of
half-depth, overlapping holes where the bottoms meet, from one line to the other. Flip and
repeat from the other side, then clean up with a chisel just like with the mortises, only this
time, leave the ends round.
• For the foot slope, mark a diagonal from each end to the top, starting 2" from the bottom,
and ending at a point 1 3 /4 M from center, and cut.
Step 15
• To finish the ends of the beams, cut a diagonal W from the top edge to a point 1 1 /2 M in from
the end
• To make the pins, cut the V2" dowel into twelve 4" lengths. Using a knife, taper the last V2"
or so.
• Now clean up all the parts. Sand or plane all the pieces, being careful of the areas around
the joints (too much will change the fit).
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Workhorses
Step 16 — Assembly
• Starting with the stretchers, slip the tenons through the legs and carefully drive the pins
through with a hammer. You should see the joint tighten itself as the pin goes through.
Drive the pin until it sticks out both sides equally.
Step 17
• Next add the beam, and lastly the feet.
• You can cut the pins off flush, but I like to leave them a little proud. The easiest way to do
this is to drill a hole in a scrap of wood about 1/8" thick, slip it over the pin, and saw
against it.
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Workhorses
Step 18 — The Finish Line
• The horses are now ready for the finish of your choice. I use Danish oil, but shellac,
polyurethane, or varnish will do.
• Once dry, the last step is to attach the optional sacrificial pieces to the top. Because I
work with a lot of softer woods, I use clear cedar for this. That way, not only are the
horses protected from errant saw cuts and the like, but the workpieces I place on them are
protected from the horses' harder fir. As before, you can use any wood you like, or none at
all.
• To make these tops easy to replace and free of metal fasteners, I use double-stick tape.
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Workhorses
Step 19 — The Test
• The mark of any good shop furniture is not only its strength but also its versatility — its
ability to adapt to the odd secondary uses you come up with.
• I could test the workhorses' strength by stacking them with beams and chopping more
mortises, but after two days spent building them, I'd rather test out their versatility. So with
the help of some scrap lumber and a frosty beverage, they are transformed from
workhorses to ... relaxhorses.
This project first appeared in MAKE's Ultimate Workshop and Tool Guide , on page 38.
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